Posted by tecwrg on 1/17/2014 5:13:00 PM (view original):
Let me put it this way.
I think the union has an ethical responsibility to do what they feel is in the best interests of their members, as a whole in general and on a case by case basis for specific cases.
"Fight this to the bitter end" did not seem like if would be in the best interests of the MLBPA for this particular case, because there was a 0.0% chance that an independent arbitrator was going to completely toss the suspension, or even reduce it to something lower than what a negotiated settlement would have resulted in.
Trying to fight the battle the way ARod seems to have insisted it be fought would have undermined the credibility of the MLBPA which, as you know, has traditionally been the strongest union in professional sports since Marvin Miller became it's Executive Director in 1966.
From what I understand, the MLBPA has a responsibility to defend all of their players in any appeals process to the best of their ability. ARod is arguing they did not do that, and he seems to have a point. And what's the worst case scenario in not fighting for ARod as best as they could? They're just doing what a union is supposed to do.
That said, it doesn't seem to be enough to overthrow the entire suspension.